Rocks D. Xebec was a legendary pirate who sailed the seas of the One Piece world before the rise of the Pirate King, Gol D. Roger. Initially, Eiichiro Oda introduced Rocks D. Xebec to us in One Piece Chapter 957, which was officially released on September 30, 2019, in Shueisha’s Weekly Shonen Jump Issue #44. However, the legend of Rocks was only explored properly in the Elbaf Arc, starting with One Piece Chapter 1155 on July 21, 2025. Since then, we have come to know all about Rocks, from his life to his level of strength. Now, in the climax of the Elbaf Arc, Eiichiro Oda has officially confirmed three legendary pirates who went on to surpass Rocks D. Xebec in terms of strength, and this is the Monster Trio of the Roger Pirates.
One Piece Chapter 1191 Confirms Roger, Rayleigh, And Gaban To Be Stronger Than Rocks
One Piece Chapter 1191 was officially released on August 23, 2026, in Shueisha’s Weekly Shonen Jump Issue #39, and this new chapter was significant for the battle in Elbaf. The vast majority of the chapter was focused on Nerona Imu, who officially powered up even further with a new transformation in order to eliminate the threat of Nidhoggr, Nika, and Scopper Gaban all at once and take over the country of the giants. However, taking over Elbaf has not been easy for the King of the World. In One Piece Chapter 1190, Imu faced immense resistance from the Left Arm of the Pirate King, Scopper Gaban. Against all odds, Gaban was able to perform incredibly impressively against Imu. Even though he was old and already severely injured, his performance against Imu was better than that of Loki and Luffy combined.
“Sorry about this one, Jewel Tree Adam! It wasn’t my intent to eat you! Damn these creaky joints!! It sucks to get old! Gate of God!!” — Scopper Gaban launches his attack on Imu, One Piece Chapter #1190
When Imu and Gaban began their battle, he opened with some light attacks, such as his Mantis Axe Style, but immediately increased the scale of his attacks to showcase his mastery over the Color of the Supreme King. Scopper Gaban first unleashed a powerful Conqueror’s Haki strike through a technique known as Kamudo, or the Gate of God. This attack was blocked by Imu using a shield of Omen, but surprisingly, he still sustained damage from it. Immediately after, Gaban followed up with a powerful technique known as Yachitakeru, which was 100 times stronger than the attack that almost killed Luffy and Zoro at the beginning of Elbaf, called Yasotakeru. This new strike was so powerful that it chopped up a massive part of the Adam Tree and sent it crashing to the Underworld. At the same time, it also dealt deadly damage to Imu.
“Even though you’re old, still the Pirate King’s Crew!” — Nerona Imu, surprised at Gaban’s overwhelming strength, One Piece Chapter #1190
In One Piece Chapter 1191, Nerona Imu was seen lying in a pool of his own blood, with bleeding from his head, nose, and mouth, and with multiple cuts across his chest. It was at this point that Imu realized how strong the Roger Pirates were. Up until this moment, Imu did not truly have any idea of the strength of the Roger Pirates, but seeing the Left Arm of the King, Scopper Gaban, deal such deadly damage, Imu lamented not being able to foresee how strong those three kids would become after God Valley, and not eliminating them on the same day. This paints a direct comparison between Rocks D. Xebec and the monster trio of the Roger Pirates, composed of Gaban, Rayleigh, and Roger himself.
“Crew of the King of the Pirates! I failed to foresee what would become of those mere children at God Valley! I should’ve eliminated all of it on God Valley, along with Rocks, on that day, years ago!” — Imu after being hit by Gaban’s Yachitakeru, One Piece Chapter #1191
How The Roger Pirates Trio Surpassed The Rocks Pirates
Scopper Gaban being able to push Imu in his full Akuma no Mi form to such a degree is perfect evidence of the fact that he surpassed Rocks D. Xebec as a fighter. Even in his old age and despite carrying several injuries, Gaban was able to push Imu to the point where he had utilized a completely new transformation to heal from his injuries and to end the battle for good. When Rocks fought Imu in God Valley 38 years ago, he was put down by the King of the World while using Saturn’s body. This form of Imu was significantly weaker than the one that Gaban faced, and even then, Rocks was not able to deal any damage.
“Meanwhile, the Pirates who scattered to the wind after the God Valley Incident would grow in power over the next 10 or 20 years to reach their prime and become the face of the era. But only one managed to achieve the impossible – the crew of the Pirate King!” — Oda confirms Roger Pirates grew stronger after God Valley, One Piece Chapter #1167
Furthermore, the fact that Imu himself confirmed that Roger, Rayleigh, and Gaban grew tremendously in terms of strength following the events of God Valley, where they were only considered to be “kids” in terms of power, goes to show that they completely dominated the era following Rocks’ death. The version of Gaban that was able to injure Imu severely was old and already on the verge of death following attacks from Gunko. Gaban, in his prime and at full health, was an absolute monster who would have been multiple times stronger than the version that Imu just fought. All things considered, the Roger Pirates officially surpassed the Rocks Pirates in their prime, and it goes without saying that they are the strongest pirate crew in existence that Eiichiro Oda has shown to us.
Only Joy Boy Surpasses The Roger Pirates Trio In The Pirate World
While the Roger Pirates were officially confirmed to be the strongest pirate crew in One Piece Chapter 1191 on August 23, 2026, there is still one crew that likely surpassed them. That is the crew of Joy Boy from the Void Century. In the Egghead arc, it was officially confirmed in Chapter 1014, which was released on May 13, 2024, in Shueisha’s Weekly Shonen Jump Issue #24, that Joy Boy was the first pirate in existence. This means that he had his own crew, and that this crew was on a completely different level of strength. So far in One Piece, only Joy Boy’s crew can be ranked above the Roger Pirates in terms of overall power.
“Those voices were telling the truth. Someone will eventually come and surpass us all. We were just too early.” — Gol D. Roger confirms Straw Hats will surpass his crew, One Piece Chapter #968
That said, One Piece Chapter 968, which was officially released on January 20, 2020, in Shueisha’s Weekly Shonen Jump Issue #8, confirmed to us that the Straw Hat Pirates will eventually go on to surpass the Roger Pirates as well. This means that Luffy will surpass Roger, Zoro will surpass Rayleigh, and Sanji will surpass Gaban in terms of power. We absolutely cannot wait to see what kind of monsters these three individuals will become. The other members of the crew also cannot be underestimated, and all of them will grow in their own way and attain tremendous strength in the process.
The latest One Piece manga chapters by creator Eiichiro Oda can be read via Manga Plus and Viz Media.